The Joy of the Summit<\/h2>\n
Not to be lost is the joy and satisfaction felt by hundreds who celebrated a life long goal:<\/p>\n
Peter Wilson<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n We did it!\u00a0At 4:20am on the 22nd of May, after 55 days and a 10 hour summit push, I was blessed enough to stand in a space that seems to have more to do with the cosmos than it does the earth. The summit of Mt Everest.<\/p>\n There was no watershed moment or fireworks as we passed onto the summit ridge, just bitter cold and sheer exhaustion. Phones and gadgets lasted minutes as we tried to take summit pics. I picked up mild frost bite on my left hand and apparently froze my left cornea slightly, all which will heal perfectly. Perhaps this was just my small price to pay to realize a 15 year dream.<\/span><\/p><\/blockquote>\n Chad Gaston:<\/a><\/p>\n Hello from camp 2, we all made it down safely. We all have our aches and pains. My toes and fingers will be fine in a few months no permanent damage just dead nerves. Will lose most of my toenails, I\u2019m sure, but it could have been much worse.\u00a0I am still processing the last two days and need some time to clear the facts from hearse, and remember what I saw and felt.\u00a0So I can tell the real story, of what happened on Everest May 23, 2019.There are so many emotions of joy, relief, sadness, disbelief and so on. It will take some time to sort out my feelings.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n And Elia Saikaly<\/a><\/p>\n I have a lot to say and share. I cannot believe what I saw up there. Death. Carnage. Chaos. Lineups. Dead bodies on the route and in tents at camp 4. People who I tried to turn back who ended up dying. People being dragged down. Walking over bodies. Everything you read in the sensational headlines all played out on our summit night.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n 65 Degrees North<\/a>, an organization for wounded \u00a0warriors:<\/p>\n On the 21st May, at around 5.30am, I summited the highest mountain in the World!\u00a0I have finally received a couple of photos from the Sherpas as my down-suit zip was frozen and I was unable to reach my phone to take any photos!This has been the toughest challenge for me, both physically and mentally, especially after a very emotional split from Rich at 27000 ft, then continuing to climb through the night with Tengee and Namgya Sherpa<\/a>.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n <\/p>\n As I have been covering all spring season, the jet stream has been parked near or on top of the summit the entire season. Instead of moving off in early May, it was stubborn but the strong Sherpas got the ropes to the summit on the Nepal side on May 14, not the latest but still later than usual.<\/p>\n A few teams jumped into the early narrow weather window and summited but most laid back for what was predicted as a longer, more stable period when the summit winds would be under 30 mph\/48kph. But too many waited.<\/p>\n With Nepal issuing a record 381 foreign climbing permits combined with a requirement that each climber must have a Sherpa guide, hundreds were put into a choice of attempting the summit this past week or gambling that a window would emerge later before the season shuts down due to the incoming monsoons.<\/p>\n Many, many choose this past week’s window.<\/p>\n The jet stream was predicted to be “wobbly” this past week which simply meant there would be periods of high and low winds. Weather forecasting became an art, not a science.\u00a0\u00a0In last Sunday’s\u00a0Weekend Update May 19<\/a>\u00a0,\u00a0Chris Tomer of Tomer Weather Solutions<\/a>\u00a0commented on the jet stream predicting,<\/p>\n “The jet will definitely weaken but it will wobble<\/strong> back and forth.\u00a0The first big wind drop occurred on the 19th with another to follow on the 20th. The sweet spot may very well be 22-24.<\/strong> Then the jet slams the summit.”<\/p><\/blockquote>\n He was pretty much spot on.<\/p>\n On\u00a0Monday, May 20,\u00a0Mingma Sherpa\u2019s Imagine Nepal<\/a>\u00a0got the week going with seven members on the summit plus seven Sherpas. They were the only summits on Monday morning.<\/p>\n On Tuesday, May 21, with teams staged at the South Col, Asian Trekking made it but others didn’t like the wobbly winds and stayed put.\u00a0David Hamilton of Jagged Globe<\/a> posted:<\/p>\n Summit bid postponed due to high winds. Will stay at C4 and try tomorrow night<\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n It wasn’t a lot better on the Tibet side.\u00a0Jake Norton<\/a> commented:<\/p>\n I\u2019ve certainly had better days moving up the North Ridge, but I\u2019ve certainly also had worse. Our team made a big move today from ABC to Camp 2 in a push, trying to make the most of this possible weather window. Lots of vertical, lots of wind, but some sun and calm too. Fingers crossed that the wind dissipates overnight.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Then came Wednesday, May 22, the day many had targeted as THE day to summit. It would be the best of windows, and the worst of widows … And it continued into Thursday.\u00a0Meteoexploration<\/a>\u00a0offered this forecast of a two day window and maybe a day and half early next week.<\/p>\n Teams jumped into this window, crowds be damned.\u00a0IMG reported they got 36 climbers on the summit.\u00a0Jagged Globe said 12 on top. Climbing the Seven Summits ended up with a whopping 42 on the summit just this past week with more to come. \u00a0Seven Summits Treks had summited over 60 in the first window and now another 17 on top. The volume operator was in full swing.<\/p>\n Madison Mountaineering<\/a>\u00a0had 34. Kaitu Expedition with 28, Benegas Brothers, 8, AAI around 20, Adventure Consultants 19 safely up and down. \u00a0And there were literally hundreds more.<\/p>\n And on the Tibet side, success as well with\u00a07 Summits Club with<\/a>\u00a07 members, 7 Sherpas.\u00a0360 Expeditions<\/a>: 3 members, 3 Sherpas.\u00a0Furtenbach Adventures,<\/a>\u00a030 and more. \u00a0Kobler & Partner<\/a>\u00a0had 8, \u00a0Summit Climb<\/a>\u00a0also 8. :4 members \/ 4 Sherpas and\u00a0Climbalaya<\/a>: 7 members, 7 Sherpas<\/p>\n But there was a cost to all this success.<\/p>\n As my regular readers know, I’ve been writing about this year’s situation Ad nauseam and you can take a look at these two posts for the details:<\/p>\n In speaking with guides, Sherpas and climbers from this past week,\u00a0\u00a0I believe this year’s 21 deaths are a result of many factors and crowding was not a factor<\/strong> in 16 of the 21.<\/p>\n Root Causes for Deaths on Everest:<\/strong><\/p>\n Adding to Risks:<\/strong><\/p>\n Impact of Crowds<\/strong><\/p>\n This last point is where the discussion needs to take place.\u00a0It’s clearly true that crowds slow the pace of a climber and thus increase fatigue and the use of oxygen. Some of these climbers who died spent 10 or 12 hours to get to the summit and 4 to 6 hours to get back down near the South Col. In other words, in some cases a 16, 18 or even 20 hour day.<\/p>\n It’s rare to carry oxygen for that much time thus forcing the Sherpas to turn down the flow or give up their own personal supply – either way, not a good situation.<\/p>\n Simply put, the human body was not designed to withstand such a long period of intense exertion above 8000 meters. Especially if the oxygen supply runs low or out, the climber doesn’t stand a chance.<\/p>\n The harsh reality is they should have had the personal responsibility, and experience, to turn themselves back or their support with them should have turned them back before they hit the point of no return, in my opinion.<\/strong><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n So if we look at each of the tragic deaths, I’ve grouped them into categories based on what I know thus far. We may learn more that would change my analysis, but for now:<\/p>\n Altitude Illness (perhaps related to crowds through a long time over 8000m and going too\u00a0slowly)<\/strong><\/p>\n Altitude Illness \u00a0(not\u00a0related to crowds)<\/strong><\/p>\n Fall (not\u00a0related to crowds)<\/strong><\/p>\n I find it so disingenuous\u00a0and perhaps deceptive for those guides who have loyal climbers die under their contract to continue to post self-adulation of their company\u00a0performance and never acknowledge a death under their watch and immediately promote their next climb. If not an act of dis-honor, its at the least poor tase and I expect better from them all. Look in the mirror and not at your bank account ….<\/p>\n If anyone looking to join an Everest 2020 team, just look at these teams and how the never acknowledge a death. The past is the future.<\/p>\n All of the deaths were people who dreamed of summiting Everest and coming back home to celebrate their achievement with family and friends. Few wanted to leverage it into fame and fortune. I offer my sincere condolences to their families as they grieve their loss.<\/p>\n Cory Richards and Topo Mena have pulled the plug on their effort after making one climb to 8300 meters in tough conditions. Cory said:<\/p>\n And just like that, a years worth of work comes to an end. There is a marginal window approaching, but not one that warrants an attempt on our route. So, @estebantopomena<\/a> and I will join scores of other expeditions and routes that have taken multiple seasons to complete, pack up our shit, and start the process today to return next season to try again. Disappointing? For sure. Realistic? Totally. Good luck to our friends who are trying to squeeze a summit in these last few days. Big thanks to our team @alpenglowexpeditions<\/a> for the support. Only 12 months to be better, stronger, more refined, and more dialed. Thanks #Everest<\/a> for keeping it very real this season.<\/p><\/blockquote>\n Nirmal Purja<\/a>\u00a0is gaining global fame<\/a> for taking helicopters from mountain to mountain on his project to summit all fourteen 8000ers in 7 months, and break the current record of 7+ years. This far has six 8000ers with Annapurna in late April then Dhaulagiri, Kangchenjunga then Everest and Lhotse now Makalu.\u00a0He had said he doesn’t have enough money and may cancel the entire program hit that does not appear to be the case any more.<\/p>\n David G\u00f6ttler<\/a>\u00a0looking for a no Os summit of Everest showed outstanding personal responsibility and turned backed at 8650 meter. He told Stefan Nestler<\/a>: “Turning around was not difficult. Before that, I had thought carefully about what could happen. And when the combination of bad weather, a lot of traffic and me not as fresh as a daisy anymore occured, I knew that the risk would be too high.”<\/p>\n This is what is happening on the other 8,000-meter peaks in Nepal and Tibet.<\/p>\n Annapurna – Over<\/strong><\/p>\n Felix Berg <\/a>and\u00a0Adam Bielecki<\/a>\u00a0ended their effort due to snow and weather conditions:<\/p>\n Annapurna Standard – 32\u00a0Summits, 1 Death<\/strong><\/p>\n Dhaulagiri – Weather Hold, Summits<\/b><\/strong> Lhotse – South Face Over<\/strong> Lhotse – Standard route – 40+ Summits and 1 Death<\/strong><\/p>\n Many summits as Everest climbers tag Lhotse on the way down, and several dozen or more climbing Lhotse from EBC directly.<\/p>\n Makalu – 52+ \u00a0Summits and several Deaths<\/b><\/strong><\/p>\n Another few this week.<\/p>\n Kanchanjunga – 28+\u00a0<\/strong>Summits, 3 Deaths<\/b><\/p>\n Cho Oyu – Cancelled and 1 Death<\/strong><\/p>\n Incredibly after a deadly season there are a few teams still looking to summit Everest on Monday or Tuesday in a calm window … they may be the smartest teams of all this 2019 season.<\/p>\n Several times a day, I’ll update the\u00a0team location table<\/a>\u00a0with last known camp and latest headlines. Also I usually do two post a day during the big summit week, one reaping the day and one for the next wave. You can sign up<\/a> for (and cancel) notifications on the lower right sidebar or check the site frequently.<\/p>\n Climb On! I like to use these weekend updates to remind my readers that I’m just one person<\/a> who loves climbing. With 37 serious climbing<\/a> expeditions including four Everest trips under my belt and a summit in 2011, I use my\u00a0site<\/a>\u00a0to share those experiences, demystify Everest each year and bring awareness to Alzheimer’s Disease<\/a>. My mom, Ida Arnette, died from this disease in 2009\u00a0as have\u00a0four of my aunts. It was a heartbreaking experience that I never want anyone to go through thus my ask for donations<\/a> to non-profits where 100% goes to them, and nothing ever to me.
\nThe Jet<\/h2>\n
Everest – 700+ Summits, 11 Deaths<\/h2>\n
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The Everest Deaths<\/strong><\/h2>\n
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Other 8000ers Deaths\u00a0 (not\u00a0related to crowds)<\/strong><\/h3>\n
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Disingenuous<\/h2>\n
Family<\/h2>\n
\nNew Route Update – Over<\/h3>\n
Ambitious\u00a0Climbers Update<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\nThe “Other” 8000ers<\/h3>\n
\nHoria Colibasanu<\/a>\u00a0along with Marius Gane and Peter Hamor<\/a>\u00a0ended their effort.<\/p>\n
\nSung Taek Hong<\/a>\u00a0team have ended their effort due to snow conditions<\/p>\n
\nNext Week – Last Summits<\/h3>\n
Follow Along<\/h3>\n
\nAlan
\nMemories are Everything<\/p>\n
\nWhy this coverage?<\/h4>\n
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\nPrevious #Everest2019 posts:<\/h3>\n
Everest 2019: Team Locations and Headlines<\/a><\/h3>\n
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